Bratkowski, Bill Mar 6.13 SPECIAL PLACES

Back in the early 70's when I had returned to Vancouver for a few years I directed a TV commercial with Mr. Broadfoot for the BC Mining Association We shoot it up in Barkerville. He was a wonderful on camera spokesman for the history of mining industry in BC. Also, he regaled us with his writing experiences. A wonderful man. Did he also interview many first world war veterans? I think he did if my memory dose'nt fail me.

The old Vancouver Hotel at the corner of Granville and Georgia housed the returning officers from the second world war. My best friend, Johnny Northfields father was a major I think and he lived there at the hotel for a while. Part of the hotel was boarded up, especially the large theater. Johnny at the time was taking piano lessons and could play some of the classics. We used to get into the theater by way of a hole in the boarded up entrance. There was an old piano in there and I would sit in one of the many seats and listen to Johnny pound out a little Chopan.

I'll never forget when they took the wrecking ball to that old hotel next to the Lyric Movie theater on Granville street. The ground trembled as that ball would swing out over Howe street and smash into the side of the building. That old building put up quite a fight and I thought she did not want to come down. It was a grand old place with a great drive through entry way, large lobby and great wide hall ways.

I will never forget those wonderful performances by, at the time, my best fiend Johnny Northield.

Connon, Jim Mar 2.13 HANGOUTS

For the young fry in the mid thirties the West End was full of interesting things to do and none more so than the water front of Coal Harbour centered around the Denman St. wharf area. There was machine shops, small ship repair yards , some with "ways " on rails that brought the boats up out of the water so that repair could be done on hull , propellers etc. These always facinated the 4 or 5 of us and we would be getting in the way of the workmen till they got fed up with us and ordered us to get out and stay out of their area. Off we would go down the many floats where a whole communiy of family house boats were tethered and sometime fished for shiners there. A combination of water pipes and hoses from shore brought fresh water to these residences but there was no means of sewage apart from " flush" and hope that there was sufficient tidal swirl to carry the effluent away. At times there wasn't and the area could become odiferous. This didn't bother the residents and besides the float rental was cheap. There was a bootlegger house which was easy to spot because often the police boat Teco was tied up there taking on refreshment when they weren't trying to capture several of us in an overloaded row boat making way for Deadman's Island or fishing off the Brockton Point bell bouy. At times this was dangerous waters , choppy and fast current , four in the boat with about one or two inches of free board and the light house keeper shouting at us to get away from there. If my parents had known about this I would have gotten an earful. Scattered around the Harbour were old derilects, mainly fishboats, awaiting their watery fate and we would clamber over them like a bunch of rats. One in particular that we run all over it's decks was an old B.C.Telephone Co. cable layer named Brico. It sat there for years waiting out it's remaining time until one day fate dealt it a lucky hand. It's destiny was to become a oyster restaurant at Fanny Bay on Vancouver Island. There was lots of activity around Denman St. with the Arena reputed to be the biggest in all of Canada with hockey and lacrosse which we found ways , like an unlocked coal shute door, to gain unpaid admission. Many of these forays resulted in quick ejection by an observant security staff on the look-out for free loaders. The Aditorium on the corner of Denman and Georgia also received our full attention where wrestling, six day bike races and other events was a challenge to our sneak-in approach. Ejection was a common event here too. A spectacular fire levelled the Arena around "36 . Burning embers were falling on our house which was a good couple of city blocks away from the fire. My dad was on the roof most of the night putting them out with a garden hose . Times however, were changing. The bell bouy fishing and Deadman's Island was giving away to school ground sports, soccer, baseball and handball and, yes, talking to girls, yes, they were different all right. It all had to with growing up, I think.

Jones (Church), Pat Mar 14.13 SPECIAL PLACES

I remember the egg and cheese man. You would tell him how much and he could cut exactly the right amount. Also in the 10 hundred block - the fish market, the Old Country Bakery and dairy (Cadbury's?/Canterbuyr's?) where I had my first milkshake and got brain freeze! The spice shop was Gallway's and there is one in New Westminster. I lived at 1052 West Pender until my mom died when I was 18. My dad had just gotten a job out of town and it was my uncle's house we lived in. It was a rooming house that my mom looked after so I had no where to go. The Panton's moved into 1132 W. Pender when we were in grade 3. It had been a rooming house also and had the most magnificent stained glass window in the hallway stairs landing. Beautiful house and huge. I went to Aberdeen, or Dawson Annex as it was later called. Had a picture taken for the Vancouver Sun standing in the brand new wading pool. Remember they had an Industrial Art class in the basement, much like an alternate school would be now. Also, the small playing field behind the gym, where some of us bad kids used to sneak a smoke during ball. The gym floor was so small you had to stand sideways to throw the ball back when you were off-side. Lots of good memories from that time! Thanks, guys.